Pats Pulpit
Last week did not quite go as planned for the Patriots. The so-called hat and t-shirt game produced neither, and the awarding of the AFC East title will have to wait. New England won’t be able to clinch the division this week either, but a win in Baltimore will officially secure them a playoff berth.
I’m not here to beat a dead horse. This was a tough, heartbreaking loss to a rival, but New England still controls its destiny for the division title and a high seed. They’ve been one of the hottest teams in the league all season under Mike Vrabel, and one bad half doesn’t erase that. After all, this same Bills team lost to the Miami Dolphins, 13-30 in Week 10 and that’s not holding them back.
The question going forward is how the Patriots will respond in Week 16 when they travel to Baltimore for a flexed-up, hyped-up Sunday night matchup. Opening odds put the Ravens as 2.5-point favorites, even though the Pats have won every road game and every night game so far. This will be a tricky one – Baltimore always plays New England tough. I have no money on this game, but I do have confidence Mike Vrabel will have his team raring to get out there to make up for all the breakdowns that happened last week. A win fixes everything.
GO PATS!!
Around the AFC East:
New England Patriots (11-3) at Baltimore Ravens (7-7)
Buffalo Bills (10-4) at Cleveland Browns (3-11)
Miami Dolphins (6-8) vs. Cincinnati Bengals (4-10)
New York Jets (3-11) at New Orleans Saints (4-10)
AFC Matchups:
Denver Broncos (12-2) vs. Jacksonville Jaguars (10-4)
Pittsburgh Steelers (8-6) at Detroit Lions (8-6)
Los Angeles Chargers (10-4) at Dallas Cowboys (6-7-1)
Houston Texans (9-5) vs. Las Vegas Raiders (2-10)
Indianapolis Colts (8-6) vs. San Francisco 49ers (10-4)
Kansas City Chiefs (6-8) at Tennessee Titans (2-12)
3rd – Vinnie Iyer (Sporting News): The Patriots have cooled off a bit with Drake Maye’s passing and revved up their running game. Blowing a 21-0 lead at home to the Bills with the division on the line is a little bit worrisome. [-2]
4th – Frank Schwab (Yahoo! Sports): The Patriots lost after leading 21-0 against the Bills, and that’s not great. Let’s not overreact though. New England is 10-1 in their past 11 games. The Patriots have a quarterback in Drake Maye who can still win MVP if they win the division. New England outgained Buffalo on Sunday, it just couldn’t close out the win. The loss wasn’t great, but every team behind the Patriots in the rankings has lost more than one game over their last 11. Don’t give in to recency bias. [nc]
4th – Ralph Vacchiano (FOX Sports): It’s not just that they blew a chance to clinch the AFC East. It’s that they led 24-7 at halftime and blew it. It’s exactly why I’m worried about how good this unproven team really is. [-3]
4th – NFL Nation (ESPN): *Extension...
